The Chinese language has been around for over 5000 years. It started as drawings and slowly evolved into the characters we know today. Simple characters combine to form complex characters. It is also the language of Curtis’s ancestors. Thus it was important to him that Exhilo’s brand includes a Chinese motto.
| Curtis wanted to convey the message that creation is a meaningful, purposeful, constant, and never-ending act. |
First we looked into the phrase for creation. There are many ways to communicate the act of creation in Chinese. Google Translate would give you a medium list of results, however, there was much more digging that could be made.
Helen Wang owned a Chinese dictionary that explained even more specifically the meaning of each character and how they relate to form different contextual "create" words.
|
创建 (chuàngjiàn) – in the context of building from the ground up or for the first time in history 创造 (chuàngzào) – in a more general context of establishment for the first time in history 制造 (zhìzào) – in the context of manufacturing of products 创作 (chuàngzuò) – in the context of poetry, literature, or artworks 缔造 (dìzào) – in the context of career, corporations, or empires 塑造 (sùzào) – in the context of sculptures, models, or shapes 发明 (fāmíng) – in the context of scientific inventions, methods, or ideas Curtis wanted the Chinese characters to speak to artists and designers, thus 创作 was chosen. |
Then we looked into ways of conveying limitless or infinite in Chinese. Suddenly it dawned on us! 无穷 literally translates to no lack, boundless. In Chinese, the parts of speech are often interchangeable. Verbs, nouns, adjectives, or adverbs can all act like each other. Therefore 创作无穷 can mean “infinitely create” or “create infinity.”
The words themselves form a full circle like an infinite loop, a beautiful poetic meaning to the Chinese characters "创作无穷" — Infinitely create!
Leave a comment